How Drone-Based Reality Capture Is Changing Construction Progress Tracking

OpenSpace Air is a new Visual Intelligence platform from OpenSpace that uses drone footage and artificial intelligence to stitch together up-to-date aerial mosaics of an entire construction site — giving project teams a birds-eye view of progress that traditional ground-level walkthroughs can’t match. Over the last 18 months, we’ve partnered with longtime Suffolk Technologies portfolio company OpenSpace — a startup Suffolk has invested in through its venture arm — to provide feedback on this latest innovation.

For years, OpenSpace has been our go-to solution for progress tracking on site. Field personnel can walk the jobsite with a camera attached to their hard hats, or even in some cases use robots, to accomplish the walkthroughs, and OpenSpace melds seamless photo and video capture with artificial intelligence — a technique known as reality capture, which documents real-world site conditions through photo, video, or similar scanning methods — to create a full record of project documentation.

This innovation takes OpenSpace’s progress tracking to (literal) new levels, stitching together drone footage to create up-to-date aerial mosaics of entire sites. These birds-eye views, with an immersive feel, allow our teams to see the entire site all at once. With this expansive view, our teams can manage logistics plans based on current conditions, compare the 3D images to our models, and quickly update stakeholders on the project’s status.

Here’s how OpenSpace Air is working on our White Plains Hospital inpatient building project.

• Managing logistics: These aerial mosaics let our teams see both project progress and what materials are on site, in 3D, so we can zoom in and pull measurements for current conditions. At White Plains, we can track the progress of the foundations, superstructure, and traffic management plans — for example, a steel truck can know exactly what materials to deliver and where.
• Comparing to models: OpenSpace Air lets us overlay the mosaic site capture with our digital preconstruction model and drawings, so we can compare photo progress against design documents and catch any clashes between the drawings and real-world conditions. This provides new insight into what work is in place and what’s still outstanding, along with a quick gut check for out-of-place footings or utility services, which we can then verify in the field.
• Making smarter decisions: Having this information at our fingertips leads to more informed and meaningful discussions with all stakeholders. Our clients have said seeing site progress over time is incredibly valuable, and OpenSpace Air promotes fast, effective communication on this front.

A model overlay on OpenSpace Air visuals from White Plains Hospital.

OpenSpace Air is just one example of how partnerships we have with technology companies benefit both our teams and the innovators building these solutions. Our project teams have early access to game-changing solutions, while our partners gain real-world testbeds to iterate on their products. We’re also working with OpenSpace on other AI-powered solutions, including autolocation on site so users don’t have to go through the extra step of dropping a pin when making a safety observation. Whether it’s a structure or a tool, when you’re building from the ground up, it helps to have an extra set of eyes.